The Take It Back Movement has announced plans to stage a nationwide protest on June 12, 2025, in response to the country’s worsening insecurity, economic hardship, and what it describes as a shrinking civic space.

 

In a statement released Monday by its National Coordinator, Juwon Sanyaolu, the movement decried the escalating violence in the Middle Belt and northern regions, citing persistent attacks in Benue, Plateau, Southern Kaduna, and other states. Sanyaolu accused the government of negligence and denial in the face of widespread killings and displacement.

 

“In Plateau, Benue, Southern Kaduna, and across the Middle Belt, mass killings continue with terrifying frequency,” the statement read. “Whole communities are decimated. Lives are snuffed out without consequences. Internally displaced persons multiply while perpetrators roam free. The bloodletting has become a routine, and the state remains complicit—through inaction, negligence, or outright denial. This is not a democracy; this is organised cruelty.”

 

The group also condemned what it described as an ongoing crackdown on dissent, including arrests of protesters, detention of activists, and intimidation of journalists and social media users. According to Sanyaolu, these actions represent a broader erosion of democratic freedoms and an assault on civil liberties.

 

“Across the federation, the signs of democratic collapse are unmistakable. Democracy—won through struggle, sweat, and blood—has been dismantled by the very forces that once promised change,” he said. “The state has turned on its citizens with an unrelenting campaign of intimidation and censorship. Journalists are harassed. Activists are detained. Citizens are arrested for social media posts.”

 

He specifically criticised the use of the Cybercrime Act to monitor and suppress online dissent, alleging that government agents are now “stalking the digital footprints of critics” to silence opposition and criminalise free speech.

 

Rejecting the official Democracy Day celebrations, the movement is calling on Nigerians—particularly workers, students, civil society groups, artisans, and members of the diaspora—to join peaceful demonstrations across the country.

 

“This June 12, we march not just for ourselves, but for the slain in Benue, the displaced in Plateau, the silenced in detention, and the starving masses abandoned by a corrupt elite,” the statement concluded.